County Crews Begin Spraying For West Nile Virus: ‘We Feel That Action Is Needed’
Alameda County has had no human cases of West Nile virus this year, but the district says it has logged two positive tests in dead birds, and two groups of positive tests for mosquitoes.
East Bay Times:
Union City: County Set To Spray For West Nile Virus
County vector-control officials said crews will spray a neighborhood late Friday night near a park where mosquitos and birds infected with West Nile virus were found. In a release Thursday, Alameda County Mosquito Abatement District manager Ryan Clausnitzer called the virus “a threat to the health of people living in nearby neighborhoods. (Kelly, 6/7)
In other news from across the state —
KQED:
Health Officials: Contra Costa Junkyard Fire Sent Out Dangerous Levels Of Smoke
Potentially hazardous amounts of particulate matter were released by a smoky junkyard and brush fire that started in a homeless encampment in Pittsburg late Wednesday, according to Contra Costa County health officials. More than a half-dozen air tests downwind from the blaze detected at least 300 micrograms per cubic meter in the hours after the fire began, said Randy Sawyer, the county's chief environmental health and hazardous materials officer. (Goldberg, 6/7)
The Bakersfield Californian:
Valley Children's Gets Top Billing At Ice Center
It'll be another four months before a 10-acre kids' medical facility opens in southwest Bakersfield, but already owner Valley Children's Healthcare is ramping up the branding campaign. On Thursday, the company unveiled a partnership renaming a city-owned ice hockey facility off Q Street as the Valley Children’s Ice Center of Bakersfield. The deal won't be cheap for the company — it's costing the nonprofit half a million dollars over 10 years — and return on the investment isn't likely to come in cash form. But Valley Children's President and CEO Todd Suntrapak said money isn't the point of the new partnership with the City of Bakersfield and ice center manager AEG Facilities. (Cox, 6/7)